The Monster's Loose
by Mountain King
Summary: It's halloween, and Xander picks what he thinks is a suitably ironic costume. He didn't know Ethan was in town and he certainly didn't know what was going to happen afterwards.
1. Genesis

The Monster's Loose

Introduction:- This is the first in a little series I'm playing with. We'll see how far we can go with this one.

And yes, just because I've stated yet another story does not mean that the others I'm writing have stopped. I'm just not making much progress with them at the moment and this is to clear out the cobwebs and take some time away from what has become a major headache.

Disclaimer:- I own none of the characters used here. It's just for fun.

* * *

Xander turned in the mirror, it was difficult. Not only was his bedroom much more cramped than usual, but it was hard to get a good angle on what he was looking at. Hunching his back he once again squeezed himself through the doorway and made his way out of the house. Possibly for good.

Xander's drunk excuse of a Father, at least what had passed as a Father beforehand, opened the door to his own room a crack. All it took was a contemptuous glance and the old bastard cowered in terror. Xander chose to ignore the man. He had always been beyond him, in many ways Xander could now see that was part of what drove the man to beat him.

It was pathetic, but all to human. Something he had left behind this night.

Once free of the confinement of the tiny hovel that has been his home Xander could pull himself to his new, true height. It was still dark out but standing, almost naked, in the cool pre-dawn air he felt free in ways he'd never known before. Senses beyond mortal understanding sampled everything. He could taste the bitter salt of the not so distant ocean, the shadow of warmth from the nearest star and everything in between. But a shadow of what he had experienced earlier, yet magnitudes greater than what man, or even demon, could hope to imagine.

His new form was beyond both. Gene-forged by arcane technology and the greatest mind in all of creation. Xander was beyond flesh, beyond sprit. For what he had become there were no words, except one.

Unfurling his new limbs he let a grin spread across his face. This was a curse, there was no doubt about that, but for the next few minutes he was going to enjoy it. Spreading his wings Xander ran. With great strides and a speed that blurred the eye he caught an updraft and took flight.

* * *

Buffy quickly checked the brunette wig was in place and opened the door, only to stop suddenly. She'd expected Xander, but instead it was a giant in golden yellow armour. So big all she could see was it's chest, with a cluster of red jewels, like eyes, in the centre.

Reacting on instinct she kicked it away. Luckily the dress got in the way and she couldn't get a lot of power behind it. Lucky for her because she didn't hurt her friend and lucky for Xander because he was just knocked back and didn't break anything.

She realised it was one of her best friends from the yelp he gave as he hit the ground. "Xander!" Buffy shouted gathering up the skirt and jumping to his side.

It took a few moments to get him straight, but once she did and could see the full thing Buffy was seriously impressed. "Whoa Xander! That's truly awesome!" She admitted. When she'd first seen the wings he'd bought at the shop Buffy hadn't much hope but now. "What's it supposed to be?"

Xander tried to spin in a circle but it was difficult for him. He had to have stilts or something in the legs. "I am the Emperor's Angel, Primarch of the IX'th legion. Sanguinius."

"You're who now?" Buffy hadn't followed any of that.

Xander shook his head, the long blond wig moving stiffly showing just how cheap it had been. "A super-soldier from the future." He explained with a shrug that made the wings move.

"Cool." She looked closely at the costume. Now she had a moment and some good light she could see how it was painted paper mache with some extra bits stuck on. "Where you get all this?" She waved at it.

"Jessie" he admitted. "We were making the armour together, but… Yeah, then all that happened. Thought it would be cool to finally use it."

Buffy kept her poker face. She knew how close Xander and his, now dead, best friend had been. He rarely talked about him these days. It was kinda sweet really. "He'd think it was cool." She told him seriously.

Xander gave her a lopsided smile. "Nah, he'd be too busy drooling over you to notice! Buffy, Duchesses of Buffonia, I completely renounce spandex!"

Buffy smirked, remembering the quip he'd made when he first saw the costume in the shop. They both knew she didn't think of him that way. Things had gotten kinda weird when Xander had tried to ask her out last year, but if he was willing to joke like this he'd moved on. Picking up the hem of the dress she gave a mock curtsy. "Thank you kind sir! But you should really see Will!"

* * *

Xander landed outside the high school and crept to the library, stealthy despite his immense size. He could sense the Hellmouth now. The raw storm of psychic energy boiling away, a storm screaming to be unleashed upon an unsuspecting world. Like a volcano trapped under a wafer thin layer of cool marble.

All that was needed was the right impact at just the right point and the whole planet would be ripped from reality and set adrift in the Warp. Here and now, drawn to the focus point, Xander could feel the knife's edge before him. The fate of billions upon billions of precious human lives rested, here, in the balance. Those born, those yet to be. They're psychic screams echoed through eternity, the all too possible probably of failure clawed down the fabric of time at him.

The horrors overwhelmed him. It took all the strength Xander did not know he possessed to drag himself into the empty Library before he passed out.

* * *

Willow woke up only a few moments after collapsing. It wasn't that she could suddenly breathe again, more that she didn't need too.

Terrified, she stood up and saw something impossible. Her own body, still in the white sheet ghost costume. Only it wasn't her, it couldn't be. "Oh my God!" Willow staggered forward, no longer standing in her body. "I'm a real ghost!" She gasped.

This wasn't possible, Willow reasoned. She couldn't be dead, could she? Before she could do anything about it there was a scream in the distance. Reacting without thinking Willow ran out into the street.

As soon as she did, she saw him. Curled up in a ball the gold costume was unmistakable, under the white wings, that were now a lot bigger than they had been last time she saw them. "Xander! Xander?" Willow called out, not knowing what could have happened to him.

It was a year before they'd met Buffy that Xander and their friend Jessie discovered a new game war-something four thousand. Willow had been too busy studying to really pay much attention, but the two boys had gotten really into it. The figures were expensive, but the pair read a lot of the background and thought it was great.

Xander wasn't stupid, he just didn't apply himself to school stuff. So after last Halloween, when the two of them had the idea to dress as their favourite characters, Jessie and Xander had done a great job. Going all out to make the costumes out of whatever they could find. Then Jessie had died and Willow thought Xander had scrapped it all. Instead he'd built tonights costume out of the left over parts and the wings he bought at the new costume shop.

Willow took a step forward, trying to figure out a way to shake Xander, when he moved.

It was like a ripple of strength, his whole form shuddered. Even the fake wings that were somehow much bigger than they should have been. Slowly, like an enormous ice shelf cracking off a cliff, he stood up. And up.

Xander, or what should have been Xander, rose. Standing proud and tall, easily twice the hight Willow could ever hope to be and then some Xander was suddenly a giant. Even bigger than before. His wings, no longer cheap plastic moved all on their own. A brilliant bright white they somehow picked up every red light on the street, to the point where they almost glowed with the colour of blood.

That wasn't the biggest change. Neither was how he was suddenly much taller, or how the once crude costume was beautiful golden armour. No, the most impressive thing was Xander's shear presence. The way he stood there, like a statue of a god brought to life, was breathtaking.

If Willow was alive she would have fainted.

"Xander?" She asked, hardy able to speak.

The living angel looked down at her. It was Xander and not at the same time. Willow could see his features, only now they were perfect. The angle of his jaw, the arch of his eyebrows, should not be so flawless, but they were.

Words failed her, and then he spoke. It was musical, long words that flowed into each other. It sounded almost Latin, but Willow didn't recognise it.

"I don't... I can't understand you." She admitted.

He blinked in confusion before looking up into the sky for a moment. Then, with a wry smile, he pointed to the ground. It took her a moment to catch up, remembering what little she knew about Xander's costume. "Earth. We're on Earth."

"Earth." He repeated before gesturing to his and then Willow's mouth.

"English. I'm talking English." She quickly explained.

"English. Earth." The angel said carefully. Then, to Willow's surprise, he said in haltingly "I know not what... foul trick of my damned Brother... this is... but I will never follow his path."

"This isn't a trick!" She told him desperately. "I dressed as a ghost for Halloween and now I think I am one. My friend dressed as, well you and... Here you are."

"Here I am." He agreed. "For now. I don't know how either, but I sense this fate is only temporary. Soon your friend will return to you and I... a much less desirable doom awaits me."

"Doom?" Willow gasped.

* * *

Like a child knowing how to hold their breath underwater Xander built a psychic shield around his mind. A wall of will between himself and the shifting sea of Warp energy raging against the thin protection of reality. Slowly, painfully, he awoke. Pulling himself to his feet Xander could feel his body as it still struggled with the genetic changes forced on it to hold the raw power he now possessed.

He had no choice but to let it happen. It would continue even if he tried to kill himself. If such a thing was possible. It took a Primarch, or the Emperor, to kill a Primarch outright and while that wasn't what Xander was, yet, he was far too close already.

Looking back at the mouth of hell he scowled. It was one thing to know of it, another to feel... to understand. He remembered Jessie's words after he'd been turned into a vampire. How he was connected, and heard the worms in the Earth. Xander was that and more. Jessie had a pale reflection, a faint shadow of what he possessed now.

Vampires were just the start. Ignoring the Hellmouth Xander looked at the bookcases that lined the room. An archive of foreign knowledge. Describing creatures that stalked the dark places of this world. Warpspawn, neverborn, shedim, daemon. Whatever you chose to call them, they existed. They would try and fracture reality. Billions of those that inhabited this poor world had no knowledge of the knife edge their destiny rested upon. Before this night Xander knew that, but now he understood. Like the difference between being told of a pain and experiencing it.

Understanding came as easy to him as the complex mental shield he'd constructed. With it came a terrible truth. The dangers were great, knowledge was a weapon and like all weapons if wheeled incorrectly even more dangerous to the fool that used them.

With a sudden insight he understood Magnus, his damned mystical brother... No not his brother, Sanguinius's brother. He was the one that studied the mystical and arcane, searching for answers and finding them. Answers that led him down the cursed path of the traitor.

Here he was, on the precipice of the same mistake. Answers were one thing, truth was something completely different.

Xander knew all to well even being aware of the dangers was a conceit he could not afford. Neither was ignorance. Only by walking the razor edge between could he find his way.

The feathers on his massive wings rippled as he set his shoulders and reached for the first book.

* * *

Cordelia ran, screaming, from the monster chasing her. If she survived this it would be the last time she believed little Miss Buffy. Halloween supposed to be quiet. Like hell! "Help!" She cried out again.

A sudden shadow flew over her head and Cordy tripped over her tail. Falling head over heels she tensed herself, expecting to be jumped and eaten. She wasn't. There was a confused noise and a howl of dread before a thump. Then nothing.

Opening one eye she gasped. It was an angel, not the hottie in the leather coat, but an actual angel. Dressed in gold and with what looked like a halo. With one hand he reached down. Cordy felt and almost electric thrill as he picked her up. All around them the demons ran, fleeing the giant.

"Who, who are you?" She asked.

"I am known as Sanguinius. Come, this is no place for a mortal.

Wordlessly she obeyed as he lead her away.

* * *

Xander was deep in the stacks, absorbing information on the monsters of this world when his enhanced hearing picked up voices heading for the Library.

"Giles, you didn't see him!"

"Yes, Buffy" An exasperated English accent replied.

"No, you don't understand…"

"Buffy, Willow, I do understand. You've both explained it quite clearly to me. Xander became an angelic warrior and flew off to save people last night."

"We have to find him!" Willow begged as they entered. Xander ducked behind the bookcase, waiting for the right moment.

Giles took off his glasses an began polishing them. "We will, but not right now. Before we do anything we have to know exactly what sort of spell was used and how it might have effected him."

"Giles!"

"We can't afford to run around half cocked." He patiently explained. "If Xander is hurt then we would waste valuable time looking in the wrong places. What do we know of this angel?"

Xander smirked. "All together too much Giles. All together far too much."

"Wha?" Buffy gasped as Willow shouted "Xander!"

He heard them running up the steps. "Wait! Do not come up here. Not yet."

"Xander, is that you? You sound… different." Giles couldn't hide the doubt in his voice.

"I am different. I cannot be sure about how the spell effected the others, but Sanguinius was not entirely of this world. He was a being beyond mortal means and measures." Xander admitted. "Being him affected me."

Xander could sense the rising fear in the room. "Affected you, affected you how?" Buffy asked, stunned. "Are you okay?"

Checking to make sure the bedsheet he'd tied around himself was in place Xander rose again and stepped into view. "You tell me." he challenged, looking down on his friends.

"Good Lord!" Giles swore and dropped his glasses as they took a collective step back. Both Willow and Buffy looked at him with wide eyes and open mouths.

"This is going to take some getting used to." Xander admitted and then looked closely at his oldest friend. "Buffy, you might want to catch Will."

The Slayer blinked, not understanding the words. "Catch Willow?" She echoed just in time for the redhead to collapse in a dead faint. "Oh, that makes sense now. Catch her. Right." Then, with distressing predictably, Buffy also fainted.

Xander tried not to sigh, remembering how the nobel woman The Slayer had masqueraded as the night before had exactly the same reaction. "At least she didn't hit her head, this time."

End The Monster's Loose


	2. Righteous Wrath

The Monsters Loose II

Righteous Wrath

It was a dream.

It was a nightmare.

It was going to happen, it was happening, it had happened.

Darkness bled into the day, the sun turned black as the deafening sound of a thousand tortured animals howled. In front of her a demon rose. Higher and higher, it's snake like body uncoiled from the husk like remains beneath it. Buffy clutched the sword in her hand tighter.

This was a good death, a Slayers death.

Then, from above, a flash of light. Like the vengeance of an old god a spear parted the sky. A bolt of silent thunder. It struck the demon, splitting it like a dead tree and pinning its snake like trunk to the ground.

Following the thunder came the lightning. His wings flared, blond hair a second sun above a comet of golden armour. He arrived. A perfect moment where all of creation paused.

The demon roared at the angel. An armoured boot landed on its shoulder-less neck. "You gave up a most precious gift for this." The angel spoke. It's voice soft, but powerful. A sound that was enough to crush mountains or raze seas. "I pity you, but there is no place for your kind in this world now." Powerful hands reached down. With broad shoulders and perfectly sculpted muscle under chainmail the angel tore the head free.

Around her people cheered. Some we're praying, weeping openly at the sight.

Buffy wept too, but not from joy. She knew the price. She knew what the angel was.

Buffy wept. Not from joy, or love, but fear.

Then she woke up.

The vision faded as quickly as it had come. She was in the Library, slumped in one of the chairs. It wasn't the first time she'd nodded off in the room, but before she'd be waked by Giles. This time he was far too busy staring at the mug in his hands to even notice. "Giles?" She asked straightening herself. "Giles?"

He blinked, "Buffy, you're awake! How are you feeling?"

"Terrible. A little embarrassed. Did I really faint?"

Giles glanced over at the counter. "Um, yes. I'm afraid you did." Buffy didn't have to guess what, or who, he was really looking at. "I have to apologise, when you and Willow tried to describe... what happened, I did not appreciate..."

"Yeah, and I was air-head noble woman at the time. I thought 20th century me could handle it. Willow did."

"When she was a ghost, Buffy. In all fairness you need a physical form to faint." Xander said from over her left shoulder. At least she thought it was Xander. Even his voice had changed. It was deeper, stronger, yet clear and sweet as a bell. It was a voice that could bring a girl to tears.

Gritting her teeth Buffy turned to face him. Her heart, quite literally, skipped. It was Xander, but clearly wasn't anymore. It wasn't just his new size, easily twice as tall as he had been. Closer to twelve feet tall and in perfect, perfect shape. His hair was a blonde she, and most of the girls she knew would kill for. No it wasn't that. It wasn't even the wings, even tightly folded they poked up over those cliff-like shoulders

No, it was his shear presence. It weighed down on Buffy like a whole planet, she could feel him. His new power, his awesome being. It was impossible to ignore and just as difficult to describe.

"Giles," She whispered, "Do you feel that?"

"I can hear you Buffy." The giant that had been her Xander-shaped friend sighed. "And to answer for him; yes he can, but not to the same degree as you I expect."

Finding her feet The Slayer stood up and on shaky legs walked up to him. "We'll fix this. She promised him. "We will, won't we Giles?"

"I... I don't know." He admitted. "When I broke Ethan's spell everyone else reverted to normal, costumes and all. I couldn't begin to imagine why Xander would not."

Xander, whatever he was now, laughed briefly. "I'm not surprised. I only have a vague working theory and it is somewhat disturbing to say the least."

"I don't like the sound of that." Buffy said carefully.

They took a deep breath. "Then listen, and decide for yourselves. The Emperor made twenty sons. Super-humans, each genetically engineered to be perfect. I dressed as the IX'th, Sanguinius." Somehow she could hear him say the numerals.

Buffy tried to ignore that and focus on what he was saying. "After the Great Crusade to reunite humanity across the galaxy and push back the Xenos threat half of the brothers, including once beloved Horus, turned on their creator. Their father. They fell to worship humanity's greatest enemy. Known as the dark gods of Chaos. The war became known as the Horus Heresy."

Buffy frowned, she'd noticed something odd. Xander's accent was slipping. She couldn't place it, but it certainly wasn't the one she remembered.

"At the end of the horrors of that civil war Horus besieged Terra and the Emperor's palace. In a last desperate gamble The Emperor lead a strike force to Horus's flagship. I... Sanguinius, was part of that attack and was the first to encounter Horus. Sanguinius and Horus has been the closest of friends as well as brothers, but the Dark Gods has twisted all that had been good and true. Turning he who had been the greatest of all our kind into a lunatic. He killed... He killed Sanguinius, separating soul from his body and casting it adrift."

"You're saying this actually happened?" Giles asked, shocked.

"Somewhere our there, beyond, yes. All things happen Rupert Giles. Somewhere." He told them. Buffy couldn't hear anything left of her friend. "When I... When Xander made his costume and the shop owner, Ethan, cast his spell it created a vessel. Drawing the soul here, like a magnet."

"And it's that soul that's speaking to us now?" Giles said. Picking up on what Buffy had.

The Angel gave a sad little smile before nodding .

"Give him back." Buffy ordered. "Give is our Xander back!"

"I fear I cannot" He said admitted. "He was strong, and despite his perceived weaknesses would have made a fine Astarties. Only his mind had not been prepared, he had no training and thus no defences." The Angel shook his head. "My arrival cast Xander's mind free from its anchors. His psyche hangs on by the barest threads and I fear whatever efforts I make to hold on to them only cause them to fray ever more."

"I don't believe you. I'll find a way, we'll find a way." Buffy insisted. "Giles, you got an exorcism spell or something, right."

"Buffy..."

"Right?" She demanded, turning on the Watcher.

He took off his glasses and polished them. "It's not that simple. I have several..."

"Then let's get to it!"

"Buffy! I do not believe he is lying." He snapped back. "Possessions are serious business. Even if I were able to find a suitable ritual in time the damage could already be irreversible. Good lord Buffy, look at him. If this spirit, for lack of a better term, can do that what do you think it has done to his mind!"

Buffy looked up, up at the Angel's perfect features and into his eyes. Willing herself to see something of her friend still there. It was like gazing into the sun, Buffy's own eyes filled with tears. "Xander?"

He wasn't there.

All she saw was the truth. The inescapable truth and the terrible compassion of a monster.

End Righteous Wrath


	3. Shattered Conceits

The Monster's Loose

Shattered Conceits

Jenny Calendar had finished her last lesson of the day and was just as eager to escape the school as her students. The only reason why she wasn't the first out the door was the Toad. Her private name for the excuse for a human widely known as Principle Snyder. The small, in more ways than one, man was prowling the hallways and he enjoyed cornering the staff almost as much as the students. Exercising what little power he thought he had.

Only when she was sure he was long gone did she put the last couple of papers into her bag and try to leave. Jenny was nearly out the building when she almost ran into Rupert. Jenny was too busy keeping an eye out for the Toad and the school Librarian hadn't been looking where he was going either. Obviously worried about other things.

That was not good. As well as his job in the school Rupert Giles was also an active Watcher. Guardian and guide to The Slayer. One girl in all the world with the power to fight the ancient darkness that threatened to engulf humanity.

When a Watcher was distracted chances were someone, or more accurately something, was trying to end the world. "Rupert!" She said, getting his attention.

Jenn... Miss Calendar, I... I mean..."

She laughed to herself. It was fun to make the normally stuffy and proper Englishman stutter. "Yes?"

His shoulders dropped. "I was just coming to find you. I fear we could use your help." He admitted.

It was definitely the end of the world.

As well as being a computer science teacher, Jenny happened, amongst other things, to be a techno-pagan. Merging the new science of computers and the internet with the ancient mystical arts. It wasn't for everyone, but the two worked surprisingly well. If you were careful.

Rupert knew this, and knew the risks of abusing such powers. He wouldn't have come to her with this if it wasn't important. "You are aware of what happened last night, during Halloween." He asked her as they walked to the Library.

"Not really." She admitted. "Something about riots, I kept my head down."

"That was a good idea. An... shall we say acquaintance of mine came to town. Ethan Rayne."

"I've heard of him." She hissed. "He's..." Jenny struggled to think of the right words.

"He's a selfish git. Dedicated to causing chaos and mischief in the name of any one of a dozen depraved and twisted higher beings." Rupert spat. "Likes to think of himself as inventive, but really all he is is just vindictive at a world he thinks slighted him. Tosser."

Jenny had never heard Rupert sound like that. She knew he had hidden depths, but there was real anger in his voice. The infamous Rayne must have been more than just an acquaintance.

"Somehow he must of heard I was in town. The little show last night was just to say hello." The Watcher told her.

"What did he do?" Jenny asked, not sure she wanted the answer. The man's deprived reputation preceded him.

Rupert stopped, they were just outside of the double doors to the library. The was a sign on them, apologising for being closed as stock was being taken. "He opened a costume shop in town and used a bust of Janus to curse the items. The wearers became their costumes."

Jenny blinked. "That would cause a riot." She admitted, mind racing with possibles. "Still, might have been fun. Being, I don't know, maybe Wonder Woman for a night."

"There were, have been , side effects." Rupert chose his words carefully. "Xander was affected and his choice of costume has had consequences I doubt anyone could have predicted." He put his hand on the door. "You should prepare yourself."

More than a little concerned Jenny went inside. At first nothing looked out of place, she was half expecting an apocalyptic disaster, then she saw him, or should that have been Him. He was a giant, easily twice the size of Buffy. The library suddenly felt small with Him in it, the world wasn't big enough. He wore a crude toga made out of what looked like a bedsheet,but somehow made even that look regal, godlike even, over muscle that looked like it had been carved out of fine marble.

Then there was His face. More than simply handsome, every line from the shape of Their eyebrows to the angle of the jawline was perfectly shaped. A soft smile played across His features, as if Jenny's slack jawed awe at His presence was an old joke.

She didn't care.

Above all this was what she saw over His cliff like shoulders. Folded tight were a pair of wings. Actual, real wings. "Oh Gods!" She gasped.

He shook his head gently, long golden locks with a hint of dark cascading around Him. "I am no creation of Gods. I am Sanguinius, the Emperor's angel."

There was a harrumph-like noise and Jenny looked to her left. Buffy was by the book cage, crossbow in hand, pointing at the Angel. "Give us our Xander back!" She demanded.

"Xander?" Rupert had said, but Jenny couldn't imagine that the being before her could have once been the young man.

"As I have said:- A thing, once done, cannot be undone" He told her grimly and Buffy's eyes hardened.

Rupert cleared his throat. "As you can see, things are complicated."

"Is that really Xander Harris?" Jenny whispered under her voice.

The Watcher nodded, "Yes, I am afraid so."

A thought came to her and Jenny looked around again. "Wait, where's Willow?" The red haired girl had perhaps the worst hidden crush on Xander Jenny had ever seen.

"It was all too much for her. Buffy and I agreed that she should try and do some research into the character Xander went as, the one that is still here."

"Mr can't-give-a-straight-answer here didn't like the idea." Buffy snarked. "Hence the lack of trust." She patted the bow menacingly.

Sanguinius didn't seem to care. "I am only concerned that Xander's research was incomplete. Willow Rosenberg is not so lax and may jump to certain conclusions without all the facts."

"Sounds like you've got something to hide." Buffy pointed out.

Rupert frowned. "It also sounds like something of Xander remains."

"Ha! Knew you were lying!" Buffy said triumphantly. "Now give him back!"

"I have access to his memories, Slayer. But that is not Xander. His personality, that which made those moments, it is no more."

"Then what are you hiding?"

"We all have secrets Miss Calendar." He said in a voice that cut straight through her. "Hidden truths we ourselves do not wish to recognise. Even the brightest stars cast deep shadows, my own darkness is no different."

"See, I knew you were evil!" Buffy half shouted.

They looked back to The Slayer with another unreadable expression. "Perhaps. But I have always believed the virtue of one's character is measured by the struggle between our own darkness and light." The angel sighed. "Assuming Miss Rosenberg is as through in her research as ever the truth will come out. My Father did not build my brothers and I perfect. I do not doubt it was in his power, rather it was his design."

"You have brothers?" Jenny gasped

"There were twenty of us. Two... failed, nine rebelled. Of the nine that remain too many have died." He said in a level voice that spoke volumes. "Those that rebelled succumbed to their flaws, their avarice and their fears. I refuse to."

Rupert cleared his throat. "What is this flaw?"

The angel pulled himself to his full hight, Jenny could see his wings ripple. "A thirst. Not the simple thirst of the man in a desert. One that cannot be quenched. It strips you of all reason, a madness for which there is no cure. Turning brother against brother, son against father. A rage that is all consuming. Fathomless, bottomless, all consuming. Without end."

"A thirst for what, exactly." Buffy asked.

"Xander thought it was a jest. He did not know, couldn't begin to understand, there was a very good reason why I was know as the Blood Angel." With that Sanguinius showed them his teeth. Jenny bit back a Gipsy curse of her people. The had fangs, two pearl white fangs.

A sudden, loud, thunk echoed in the silence that followed those words. Buffy's crossbow bolt flew across the Library, straight and true. It would have pierced the angel's heart, it should have. Instead He simply plucked it from the air. Moving so fast the rest of the world seemed to stand still.

"I am no vampire." He explained, casually offering the bolt back to The Slayer. "I control the Thirst, it does not, will not, control me."

The small blonde reached for a sword.

"I have no wish to hurt you, or any person."

Buffy wasn't listening. Short sword in hand she leaped at him. Jenny could already tell it wasn't going to work. The Slayer was fast, the angel was so much faster. Moving like mercury He flowed in and around her swings. Even with her speed and skill looked like a child waving a plastic toy.

As she became more and more desperate her swings became wild. Hacking first into the bannister and then furniture. Even so she began to score hits.

The winged giant could only move so much in the confined Library. He took a couple of cuts on his arms. Both healing so fast Jenny could see the skin knitting back together. Buffy also saw it and that just made her swings all that much more desperate.

Sanguinius neatly sidestepped one overhead blow that would have split anything else in half and suddenly it was over. He was behind the Slayer before she had time to get her balance. Holding her clear off the floor, at arms length, by the back of the neck. The sword in his other hand.

Buffy kicked and punched in the air, helpless as a new born baby pitching a fit. "Forgive me." He asked before calmly knocking her head against the near wall. It looked like a gentle tap, but the dent in the support and the way Buffy went limp showed it was a lot more than that. "She has skill, but her passions cloud it." He told Rupert. "Impatience is a curse of the young, one she can ill afford."

As Jenny helplessly watched He put the unconscious Slayer on the table, resting the back of her head on a book taken from the shelves. "Now, there is much I must do. You will have to excuse me." Both Jenny and Rupert pushed themselves against the counter.

Sword in hand the angel left, ducking slightly to get through the human sized doors.

End Shattered Conceits

Authors note:- sorry, a young Buffy (this is early season 2 remember) is no match for a Primarch. Much of the lore describes these guys moving faster than the blink of an eye, shattering bone and steel with bare hands. That's before we get to the good parts!

Two hearts, genetically enhanced to the point they can't even be called human. There's no way she could stand against Sanguinius. That's not to say he doesn't respect her, or that later Buffy (season 7) won't have picked up enough experience to be more of a threat. It's just at this point, distracted and unfocused as she obviously is it's not a fair fight.


	4. Compassion's Curse

The Monster's Loose

Compassion's Curse

Sanguinius perched on the bluff overlooking the ocean. The crashing waves below mirrored the setting sun as high above the first, brightest, stars began to shine through the growing twilight. He was struck by the strangeness of it all. He recognised the constellations, knew the names of all the stars of old, but they were alien to him.

The sky clear of ships, of orbital platforms and of pollution. Only a scattering of primitive aircraft. This was not the Terra he knew, this was not his Father's world. It might never be.

Yet he was here and things were already shifting. Like the sands of his old home, Ball secundus. Only the endless deserts of that war blighted moon were now water.

It was perhaps a mistake to go to the Hellmouth. It's eldritch energies had sped up the process. Young Xander, despite his bravery, was not prepared and as his body underwent the final changes Sanguinius's true personality awoke. As much as he tried to preserve the young man Sanguinius could feel, even now, the last few whispers of Xander Harris fade.

Like the finest sands through an hourglass, time slipped way. It was inevitable, a mortal human mind like Xander's could not begin to comprehend the wealth of information available to a Primarch. Knowledge of science, culture, history, philosophy. All gathered for thousands of years and gifted on a genetic level. Then there were the senses, many times that of mortals. A Primarch could taste things in the air the most sensitive detection equipment could not. Could feel the movement of the ground and even see beyond visible light. Into the infrared and ultraviolet should he chose to.

Finally there were those gifts and curses unique to Sanguinius. All twenty brothers were given just a portion of their Fathers amazing powers. A touch of what he had, be it implacable strength, boundless wisdom or even psychic talent that broke the rules that governed reality. For Sanguinius it was not just his wings, but something even greater. He could see through the vail of time. Indistinct, often cryptic, he could still see the path ahead.

Sanguinius was originally a master work, created by the most brilliant minds tens of thousands of years in the making. The perfect fusion of eldritch knowledge and gene forging. Now he possessed those gifts once again. It was no wonder the young man's mind crumbled under the weight of all that.

While it was inevitable perhaps if he had been able to convince the boy to leave the enormity of his existence would have had time to creep up on the others. Then again, perhaps not.

The gentle crashing of the waves below measured time like the constant ticking of a metronome, giving Sanguinius something he had very rarely had. Time to reflect. He thought back on his actions.

It was right that he told them. They would have found out eventually. The Slayer did not trust him now, but in time his honesty would provide a foundation. As powerful as he was even he was going to need allies in this strange world. The Slayer was as good as any. Would it be enough?

* * *

Buffy winced, and instantly regretted it. The knot of a bruise on her head throbbed.

Stupid. She'd been stupid.

The thing had bragged about how powerful he was, caught the bolt out of the air like it was nothing. Of course he was fast! She should have seen that. Instead she'd gone after him, hard. He hadn't even broken a sweat kicking her butt.

So now she was hunting him down and the only question she could ask was what then? What was she going to do once she found a twelve foot tall vampire with wings? Teach them a cheer routine?

Five, seven, eight! How many people have you ate?

Buffy shrugged, she'd heard worse. Turning a corner she was about to call the whole thing off, that or maybe steal a tank from the new military base that opened over the summer, when she saw her boyfriend.

"Angel!"

"Buffy, thank god!" He dashed up to her. She practically threw herself into him. "Angel! What are you... Were you looking for me?"

"I came by the Library, Giles filled me in. That... thing I saw last night. That is, was Xander?"

"You saw him?" She asked, surprised.

"Yeah, when all hell broke lose I went to your place. It was madness, then I saw... him I guess. What was he? What happened?" He pleaded

"We all became our costumes. Xander went as that thing, when the spell broke Xander was gone and he stuck around." Buffy explained quickly. She was sure there was more but those were the highlights "I'm going to kill him."

Angel reached out and brushed the bangs of hair from her forehead, revealing the bruise she'd gone to a lot of trouble to try and hide. "Giles said you already tried that."

"Yeah, but I'm betting on a TKO in the second round. Winner me." Buffy couldn't even sound convincing to herself. The look Angel gave her told her she hadn't convinced him either. "Won't be easy, I get that."

"Where do we start?"

Buffy struggled with an answer eventually she pointed in a random direction. "Let's try that way."

And so it went on. The mismatched pair must have crossed the town half a dozen times, never catching sight of the monster The Slayer was hunting.

* * *

The night slowly passed, as all must and the day's promised arrival eventually hung heavy in the early morning air. Dewdrops gathered on Sanguinius's wings, collecting in the hollow between them.

He waited. It was almost time.

The lull of the sea and peace of distant stars has helped the Primarch find a hollow sort of peace. He knew that there was much to do, but more important than action was the timing. Knowing where to strike was less important than when.

He had watched, with eyes beyond mortal sight, The Slayer. He spent the night struggling to divine her future. soon his reluctant ally. He saw pain, sadness, grief, sorrow and loss. The fires that forge a martyr. He also saw joy, humour, triumph and most importantly love. The water that turns martyrs into heroes. Only there was too much of one and not enough of the other.

Accurately predicting the future was impossible. If you got details right you almost always missed the context. Take in the bigger picture and you miss the smaller points that made it happen. Sanguinius sighed as he forced his attention back to more immediate matters.

During his sojourn he had seen many things, the Slayer's fate was just a thread in the tapestry of time after all. Sadly another of the threads needed attention at this moment. Ignoring the tension that had struck his muscles the Primarch pulled himself to his full height and turned around.

"I know who who are. I know what you've done and I see what you have suffered." He told the figure that stood before him. "I have but one question; what is it you want of me?"

They were pale as new snow. A shaft of moonlight, gaunt and hollow, dressed in white and topped with fathomless black hair. A dammed creature. They shared the same gift as him, but much like his cursed brother Konrad, tormented by despair. Only seeing the darkest fates.

Wordlessly they curtsied before bowing deeply. "My lord." she said breathlessly in wonder.

Sanguinius resisted a sigh. "Rise child." He ordered gently. "I am not your master, Drusilla."

"But you are." She objected, swaying in the wind "The very sky sings your name."

"The sky sings, but it is I that am named for it." He countered. "I ask again, what is it you wish here?"

The mad vampire searched his face. He'd seen the same in mystics and so called seers where he had come from. Fate twisted strangely around his kind. "To understand." She admitted eventually.

Sanguinius smiled grimy. "Understanding is a journey. The destination is not the goal, just the eventual conclusion." He drew his borrowed sword. "Each journey must be one's own, but I can end yours if you wish it."

Drusilla was a monster and a victim. He recalled the tale told to Xander, of her creation, her madness and her actions. Her destruction would be a mercy. One thing stopped him. Konrad, his brother shared his gift, he'd made so many mistakes with it and Sanguinius had been helpless. Forced to watch as the madness infected him. Driving them to do the most horrible things.

In this poor slip of a demon he saw the same madness. The same curse, if it wasn't to late for her...

"Do you truly wish to understand?" He asked.

End Compassion's Curse


	5. Duality In Motion

The Monster's Loose  
Duality In Motion

Two days and three nights.

She'd kept track, but she was no closer to finding the thing that had taken one of her best friends. Between them Buffy and Angel had almost turned Sunnydale upside down looking for them.

They'd found all sorts of things. The least strange of which was a poker tournament where the chits were live kittens. Buffy didn't know what the winner was going to do with them, and didn't want to. Thankfully Angel hadn't told her.

They'd just finished another useless hunt and Buffy just wanted to call it a night. The problem with that was her mother.

Mom had figured out something was wrong and while good old Sunnydale denial was in full force she wasn't completely blind to what was going on. Buffy needed to come up with something and soon.

Opening the door Buffy didn't need to look to see her mother was waiting for her. "You're late."

For a moment Buffy wanted to apologise, but she knew it was pointless. "Yes, I am." She admitted.

"Buffy, I don't expect you to tell me everything, just the important things. What's going on? Is there a boy?"

"Kinda..." Buffy sighed before realising shat she had said. "Not like that Mom! It's, it's Xander."

"Xander?" Mom asked, shocked. "I didn't expect that."

"No, not like that!" Buffy objected quickly. "Something's happened to him. I'm just trying to find out where he's gone."

Mom was on her feet, "He's missing, or ran away?" She asked, worried. Like Buffy she knew Xander's home life wasn't the best. Just like she knew how useless Sunnydale's police could be.

"I guess you could call it that." She winced. "It happened during Halloween. I can't explain it, but I've got..." She trailed off. Some sixth, or eighth sense kicked in and Buffy looked to the window.

Standing so close the glass she was almost inside was the last person Buffy expected. "Oh my God!" Buffy's mother jumped in shock. "What...?"

Buffy knew with crystal clarity what she had to do. "Mom, stay here. This won't take long." Grabbing the stake she had hidden at the small of her back she went to the door.

"Buffy?"

"Don't worry." She said in a deadly quiet voice before stepping outside.

"Hello Buffy." The Vampire said the flicker of a smile on her pale features.

"Drusilla"

* * *

Giles unlocked his door and took off his coat. He hadn't been home in days. Not unheard of but this time he was drained. He dropped his glasses on the table and sat down. Rubbing his eyes he felt the chair creak as it took his weight.

It was no wonder Xander had missed a lot of important points to the mythology he'd so innocently aped. Tens of thousands of years, most clouded with the decay of a collapsing Empire on a scale he hadn't even imagined. Worse still the creators of this dark fantasy had left holes. Deliberately, of course, the whole point was to provide a framework for the players without too much control.

That didn't help very much when a genetically engineered Demi-god stepped out of said framework into the real world and took flight. Quite literally.

With a sigh he turned on his desk light. Hoping to unwind with a whiskey and some classic music. Instead he almost jumped out of his seat. Standing in the corner of the room was said Demi-god. "Good evening." They said. You'd have thought his voice a deep bellow, instead it was almost musical. Thrumming with sheathed power and the boundless confidence of a man who knew every word commanded respect.

"Wha... how?" Giles stammered.

"While not as stealthy as some of my brothers I do have some talent." He said modesty. "Rupert Giles, I find myself in need of council. As a Watcher I believe you have the training needed to help."

"Council?" Giles gaped. "What could I possibly help you with?" As before he was struck by the shear presence of the winged giant. It was like sharing a room with a caged star. Blinding, but he was unable to tear his attention away. It made his act of stealth that much more impressive.

"I am not sure how much you have been able to discover, so I hope it is not too much of a surprise when I reveal that I have a limited ability to discern the future."

Giles reached for his drink. "There was a vague mention." He admitted, struggling to pour a single measure. His hands were starting to shake with nerves.

Sanguinius was gracious enough to let him take a sip before continuing. "What you may not know is how fragile this foresight can be. Even the glimpse of a possible outcome can irrecoverably change it. Worse still often the brightest future can only come through suffering and the reverse is also true."

"The easiest path seldom leads to the best outcome."

"Precisely. The challenge in my case is not only choosing what path, but if the destination is desired."

A terrible thought came to Giles, "Path for yourself, or others."

"And so we reach my concern." Sanguinius nodded, as if pleased Giles had made the leap. "It is within my power to raise this world, to shape it into a perfect utopia of my choosing. Or I could raze it, burn it to sand and glass. A bitter broken monument to a people's hubris. Who is to say which is better. Who is to say they are not the same thing?"

Giles longed to throw the rest of his drink down his throat, followed by the rest of the bottle. "And we could do nothing to stop you?"

"No. You can temper my judgment. Help me see where I am wrong and why. Only my Father had the wisdom to rule alone. Even then he had my brothers and I, as well as close friends, to help him. I wish for you and Buffy to be my friends. To be my Sigillites"

* * *

Drusilla swayed from side to side, as if caught in a breeze only she could feel. Buffy stepped out of her house, keeping the vampire in the corner of her eye as she checked out the street.

It was just the two of them. "If this is a trap, you're doing it wrong." She pointed out.

Drusilla half dancers half glided to the tree off to one side before swinging around it. "No trap silly! I want to play the game."

"What game?"

"Hide and seek." she smiled. "We hide, you seek. It's my turn."

Buffy got her meaning. "You know where he is." She didn't need to say who.

"My Lord. The Father of Angels. Glowing like a star, more powerful by far!" The mad demon danced some more out of shear joy. "Not like Daddy. He breaks his toys when he plays with them. Leaves them shattered and empty. He'll break you one day too." She retreated into herself, shying away from something only she could see.

"Angel loves me." Buffy said definitely. "The thing that broke you is gone."

"And never coming back." She seemed to agree but there was something teasing in the tone of her voice. "Not ever, or ever!"

"What are you talking about?" Buffy challenged, reassured by the stake in her hand. This was the first time she'd ever had a conversation with Spike's mad girlfriend and so far she didn't like it.

The vampire's mind might be cracked, right down the middle, but that didn't make her harmless. Far from it.

Buffy wasn't sure if she'd ever get a better chance and inched closer, trying to make it look casual. "That's cheating." Drusilla wagged a finger, fake pouting before dancing just out of reach. "Can't read the last page before the first!"

"Buffy!" Her mother gasped, "What are you doing?"

The Slayer winced, the half raised stake not half as comfortable as it had been a heart beat earlier. "Mom, stay back!" Buffy warned as Drusilla curtsied.

"No need, silly Buffy. Mommys' don't play this game!"

Buffy still didn't trust her. "So let's play." She threatened. "Right now."

"That's not how you play." Drusilla shook her head. "I've got to give you a gift, then you try and find me and Sweet William. You catch us I tell you where to find him."

"If I don't?"

"Oh silly dolly, of course you will. That the whole point of the game!" With that the Vampire danced around the tree again. Only this time she stepped out carrying a sword.

Buffy heard her mother gasp as Drusilla spun the weapon around. The way she handled it sent shivers down Buffy's spine. She knew what she was doing and even weakened she was dangerous. Then, with a twirl, she lay the blade across her wrists and bowed. The handle pointed at Buffy.

Feeling very much like she was reaching her hand into a box with a live snake inside Buffy took the weapon. It was the same one she'd tried to use on the thing Xander had become. "How do you know I won't use this?"

"Because he promised." Drusilla said simply before jumping away. By the time Buffy had raised the sword the Vampire was running away, laughing like it was all a cosmic joke.

"Buffy, what is going on?" Her mom demanded. Buffy was left holding a stake and sword, with the feeling she'd just been set up.

* * *

"What makes you think I am worthy, that I am capable of such a thing?" Giles asked.

Sanguinius smiled ruefully and nodded. "A question that becomes its own answer." He explained. "Many are those that seek such power. Few that understand it, fewer still that deserve it. I must be confident, sure of both will and deed. I cannot allow doubt nor can I allow mistakes. A paradox, one no man alone can weather."

"No man." Giles echoed.

"Yes, you see me now as something more. This is both true and not. I am more than a man, but I am not more than the potential of mankind. A potential I must help see to fruition. The people of this world have the potential to conquer the stars. To overthrow the shackles of superstition, of ignorance, and embrace discovery. My Father's dream realised!"

Giles felt his blood run cold as the giant preached. As noble as the sentiment it still sounded like the manifesto of a dictator.

Sanguinius stopped and offered a sly smile. "And so I become the nightmare manifest. A tragedy, born out of best intentions." This is why I need you and Buffy, and Willow."

Giles could breathe a little easier, but not by much. "You'll have some difficulty trying to convince Buffy." He pointed out.

"Buffy is still headstrong, wilful and in pain at the passing of her friend. She blames me for she had no other option. My darker nature just gives her that much more of an excuse." He explained patiently. "She will see that soon enough, once she has had time to

reflect on the subject. The best way to do that is to distract her. Provide her with another outlet."

The phone rang, startling Giles.

"And there's the distraction now." Sanguinius smiled

End Duality In Motion


	6. Despair Nurtured in Hope

The Monster's Loose  
Despair Nurtured in Hope

Angel didn't so much as walk into Willie's Bar as stride. There were more than enough things in Sunnydale that wanted him dead and all of them knew Willie's.

If he was going to get out of here in one piece, and not in a dustpan, he needed the right attitude. After his meeting with Buffy's mother that wasn't very easy.

As much as the Bronze was the hang out for the more human inhabitants of the town Willie's was for everyone else. The owner was a slime ball who'd sell anyone and anything out for a quick buck. He also had his ear to the ground and kept his head by playing every side against each other. The only thing you could trust was the information, and that was only because the one thing more important to Willie was his own neck!

Angel didn't come often, but when he did he always expected some kind of welcome. Be it a chair to the back of the head, or a stake.

This time though was different. The bar was practically empty. "Oh, it's you." Willie said, sounding disappointed.

Angel looked around. There was a Vampire that had certainly seen better nights propping up one end of the bar and an ugly looking demon at a booth, but that was it. "Quiet for this time of night Willie."

"Yeah, quiet. Word is a blood-sucker, and his super-powered girl Friday, have been all over town looking to kill off my customers. They even wiped out Old Corvan's poker night, that thing's been going on since the Spanish first set up shop around here."

Angel shook his head. "Just a bonus. We're looking for something. Thought you could help."

"What's in it for me if I do... help?" Willie asked tactlessly.

The thing to remember with Willie was he always tried to know more than he let on. Angel shrugged, "We find this thing I might convince Buffy to take a night or two off. We don't know how long we might be looking otherwise. Might get to the point where any self respecting demon doesn't come out at all."

Willie looked at him for a moment and reached for a bottle. "Here, on the house." Angel gave him a glare, it was blood. "Not human, it's a blend. Won't sell much if you're going be out hunting and I don't want to have to throw it away. It's a pain to clean."

Angel took a taste. It was mostly pig's blood, with some others thrown in for flavour. It wasn't bad if he was honest. "So this thing the Slayer's looking for, must be bad." Willy ventured

"You hear what happened on Halloween?"

"Some Mage pulled off a spell. Caused some trouble. Didn't mean much, no one goes out Halloween."

Angel nodded. "They summoned something. Something big, with wings. It killed a friend of the Slayer."

"I'd buy it a drink then!" Joked the Vampire at the bar.

"Idiot" snapped the demon. "Slayer's pissed and you want to make friends with the thing? She'd kill you slow."

The Vampire leaned away from Angel, a synapse firing in what was left of its brains. Willie hid a smirk. "So the Sayer wants this winged thing." The barman asked. "If I hear something, you get her to back down?"

"I'll mention how helpful you've been. Your regulars keep out of her way she won't get in theirs. They pull something like Mr brainless over there..."

"I get it. I get it." Willie held his hands up. "Heard she once burnt a building down."

Angel hid a smirk of his own. "Yep, took out a lot of Vampires that way. This place wouldn't happen to be... flammable, would it?" He hinted, knowing full well that some of the bottles behind Willie were practically explosive and the building was nowhere near up to code. "If you do happen to hear something and forget to tell me first..."

"We're cool, we're cool." Willie got the message. "So other than wings what's this thing look like?"

"Big, human shaped but bigger. Blond hair and the wings, they're feathers."

Willie froze. "Feathers, you mean like, like an..."

"Bird, yeah" Angel threw the rest of the blood down and headed out. Not wanting to give any more away.

It was risky, but if what Buffy had told him was true and the thing Xander had become had influence over Drusilla it was time to take some risks. Word about the supposed blood angel would spread. With luck enough demons would be more afraid of Buffy than to join up and any big bads wouldn't want the attention.

With luck.

Otherwise he'd just made things a whole lot worse.

* * *

"I... Am... Going... To kill... It!" Buffy insisted. Punctuating almost every word with a punch and a snapping noise.

Willow winced. It was after school and the two of them were in the library, as always, and Buffy was trying to work out some stress.

According to Giles the practice dummy she was using was heavily reinforced. Slayers had a tendency to break things after all and the Watchers' Council knew that all too well. Willow wasn't sure. It looked strong enough, but Buffy was really laying into it.

"What happened?" She asked again, still not sure she'd been given an answer.

"Wing-boy set me up!" She practically shouted, kicking the padded torso hard enough to send the stuffing flying.

Willow tried not to roll her eyes. "After that."

"Right. After." Buffy nodded. "Well I couldn't exactly explain and mom was not happy. I think seeing me with a stake was freaking her out nearly as much as Dru did. I called Giles and then he called Angel."

She sighed. "Between them they were able to convince Mom I wasn't crazy when I told her Vampires are real. This time. Angel then took off to try and track Dru down."

Willow frowned. "This time?"

All the strength seemed to flow out of her friend. "Long story Will. Let's just say this isn't the first time Mom and me have had that particular talk. Without Dad jumping to conclusions and, you know, evidence this time went better. Whatever that's worth." She added bitterly.

"So what now?"

Buffy glared at the dummy, as if daring it to move, before giving up. "Giles is still talking to her. I think the only reason she let me go to school is they wanted me not there." She grumbled. "Will, I know you don't like the idea but I gotta find this thing and kill it. They've already convinced Drusilla to work for them, who knows what's next? Raising an army of Vampires? Taking over the world?"

"Maybe." Willow agreed, "It's just, with everything I've read these last few days, I don't know. Sanguinius is supposed to be one of the good guys. The best! I don't know why he'd work with a crazy vampire ."

"He... It's a vampire!" Buffy tried to explain.

Willow wasn't buying it. "He's a Primarch. Besides Angel's a vampire, since when did you judge?"

She could see Buffy's temper rising. "Since it killed Xander. Sorry Will, I know you want some part of him to still be there, but it's not. I see it in how it moves, how it fights. Whatever that thing is it's not him. It's a thing, a monster."

Willow fought back tears for a moment. "I know, I was there and I know." She admitted eventually, "But I was also there that night. I saw him, I saw what he was capable of. He is good, I know it. I sense it. Tell me you don't, go on tell me!"

Buffy looked at her helplessly.

"See, you can't even lie to yourself! You know I'm right!" Willow said triumphantly.

"Will, you don't... I can't... it's not that... You're right." Buffy admitted staring at the table in the middle of the room. "I feel it too, but it's wrong. It's wrong. It has to be." She repeated. "It's wrong. It doesn't belong here, every part of me is screaming that. It could kill us all if it wanted to. Will, I saw. I saw what it was capable of when I looked in its eyes. Don't ask me how but there was a moment, just a moment..." she trailed off. Face going pale and a strange expression Willow couldn't recognise. As if she wasn't just remembering, but reliving the moment.

Willow had seen her friend go through a lot but she couldn't even begin to describe what she must have been feeling. "Buffy?"

"It's not our world anymore Willow. It's not the demons either. It's his. As soon as he stepped on it this dirty little planet was his. We'll give it him, all he has to do is ask. People will die in the millions, the billions at a single word. I know why Drusilla's working for him, because I saw it then too. We'd do it willingly. People, demons, whatever will beg for the honour. If I didn't hate him, if I didn't fight every second I'd be right there with them."

Willow could see how much it frightened Buffy, at the same time she somehow looked hopeful. Which was even more disturbing. "If he wanted an army I'd be the first in line. Because he asked, because he thought it was needed. Because I know it will be the right thing if he said so."

Willow could see the horror growing on Buffy's face as she understood what she was admitting. To herself as much as Willow. "I have to hate, I have to kill it. If I don't I will lose. We all will. We'll lose everything we are and I don't know what we'll become."

"But, Buffy, what if you can't win?" She asked, knowing deep down the answer.

* * *

Sanguinius looked around his current home. A cave under the bluffs looking out across the sea. It was prosaic and somewhat ironic. A man that had commanded a legion, that had conquered worlds with his shadow, was reduced to living in a cave. But It was a lesson he intended to remember.

He would not succumb to the sin of pride. Be him pauper or king he was and remained a man.

Taking a deep breath of sea air he quieted his mind and meditated. Letting the past an future wash over him. Preparing for what was to come.

As he did he felt his mind expand, fleeting impressions and fractured moments flickered around his superhuman perceptions. His mind decoding secrets long forgotten and truths that would never be.

As he did he saw patterns of destiny weaving in and out. Colliding like icebergs of molten glass. Some scattering to the ethereal winds, others merged.

Dimly Sanguinius became aware of a single shape coalescing. The individual fragments that made this vision faded and soon the whole could be seen. He was no longer on Earth, no longer lost in the first age of man, but home. The scorched desert world of Baal. Some distant and dim point in its future.

The Arx Angelicum, a fortress built for Sanguinius and his legion was before him. It's architecture a wonder of times past, spires reached out of the scorching desert for the cool stars. Golden statues of heroes long past stood in silent guard. Banners announced victories old and young, in their shadows gene-forged warriors studied the twin disciplines of War and Art with equal dedication.

Only this was not the Angelicum of his memory. It was older, tarnished. It had seen war. It had seen decay. It stood still, when the time of man was at its lowest it stood but not untouched. Great acidic burns scored the walls. Rents in the stonework carved by inhuman claws grinned at him. There was evidence of repair, but that somehow was more obvious. The new stone stood by old, a mute protest to the ferocity of what had happened here.

As much as he wanted to walk the halls of his home, to see what this vision held for it, that was not the course he took. Instead Sanguinius found himself following a worn path deeper into the fortress and down.

Beneath the shifting sands slept the mystics of this order. Their power a blessing and a curse, like most gifts. The denizens of these catacombs slept in sarcophagi, while their bodies slept their minds were ever vigilant for threats from beyond.

Sanguinius travelled past them, a ghost in the tomb. His Librarians. Weapons to a man slept as the phantom of their master stalked their crypt. Deeper and deeper still, then at long last the final room. The last grave. Inside, entombed in onyx, the Chief Librarian.

The coffin lid parted like smoke to reveal a pale Astarties. Their golden blond hair almost white and deep shadows over their sunken eyes. From him came an overwhelming sense of power and death. Sanguinius knew this warrior, even though they had never met. He'd heard his voice, his rage, echoing down eternity. As it did now.

"Be still my son." He said quietly, "Let it wash over you, as it always has done. Heed not its promises, but hear its warnings."

The eyes snapped open. Clear and blue as an untouched sky. "My Primarch, you you live?"

Sanguinius felt the shock and worship, even across this unfathomable distance. "Yes Calistarius, I do."

The Lord of Death heard him. He had made contact with his Sons.

End Despair Nurtured in Hope


	7. Angels Dancing On A Pin

The Monsters Loose  
Reflections Dancing on a Pin

The bells rang out, echoing across the endless plains of sand.

It sounded like every bell in the Arx Angelicum were being rung. For more than ten thousand years only in the greatest of disasters would such a cacophony even be imagined.

Only something was different. This time they rang out, not in warning but in joy. Everyone could hear it, in the resonance. Echoing in the hearts of every Astarties on the planet.

Something wondrous. Something unprecedented. Something impossible.

The bells rang out across the world.

Lord Commander Dante, master of Imperium Nialus and chapter master of the Blood Angels marched down corridors. Chapter serfs, blood thralls, neophytes and battle brothers alike stopped and stepped out of his way.

In the eyes of every man each of them asked the same silent question.

The bells rang? Why?

Dante has no answer for them, but he was going to get one. Marching through the growing crowds of Astarties and blood thralls he made his way to the source of the cacophony.

The usually silent chambers of the Chapter's Librarians. Those cursed individuals born with the power of the Warp at their fingertips.

"My Lord Mephiston!" He bellowed to be heard after barging through the doors. The Lord of Death and Master of the Blood Angel's most potent weapons turned. "What in the name of the Blood are you doing?" the Chapter Master demanded an answer.

The Psyker's ancient face was twisted in some bizarre parody of joy. It took Dante a moment to realise this was the first time he'd seen such an expression on the normally dour Astarties "Lord Dante! He lives. He lives!"

"Who lives?" Dante asked, confused. It looked like every Psychic in the citadel was here.

"Our Master, the Great Angel himself!" Mephiston announced. "His living spirit came to me. To us. He lives! He lives!"

Dante felt the words like an artillery shell. "No, it cannot be!"

"It is! Though a great distance separates us we heard him." Mephiston seemed possessed by something. "His spirit walked these halls once more! He will return!"

"Impossible." Dante whispered, but as his reason searched for support all he could think was the same could have once been said of Gulliman.

If the XIII could have their lord and master return from the dead why not the Great Angel? "I must know Mephiston. I must know the truth."

"Yes, of course." Mephiston finally began to show a sign of the dour Lord of Death. The almost unnatural passion in his voice was confirmation enough that something was happening.

Dante nodded. Despite his reservations he felt a kindle of hope blossom.

* * *

Buffy looked out across the sea. It was late afternoon. The sun was low, about to set and it should have been warm. It was warm, but Buffy could only feel cold.

Angel had called her that morning. He'd found them. The thing that had been Xander. He'd found it.

Buffy wasn't sure if this was a good thing. She'd struggled with it all day, after dodging her mother, and still didn't know. Hefting her sword she waited for her boyfriend.

As the sun eventually set he arrived in a beaten up old car. The windows were blacked out and it spewed out a dirty black cloud from the exhaust "Didn't know you had a car." She said.

"Borrowed it. Beginning to wish I hadn't." He admitted getting out. "Where are the others?"

"Not here." She admitted. "They, I didn't tell them what we were doing."

Angel stopped. "I thought we needed all the help you could get?"

Buffy shook her head. "Will, Will wouldn't understand. She still thinks Xander's in there somewhere. Giles is in full research mode. He thinks we should wait."

"Maybe we should." Angel suggested carefully.

"What if it gets stronger?" Buffy disagreed. "We need to hit it now, as soon as we can. We can't wait." She tried to sound sure. Like she knew what she was doing.

It didn't look like Angel bought it. "Good thing I brought this then." He opened the trunk, inside was full of axes, stakes and more swords. "Cleared out my weapons cabinet. I just hope it's enough."

"Cool." Buffy again tried to sound enthusiastic, but it didn't work. "We won't need the stakes. Willow said it has two hearts and we might not reach either with those."

"Two? Anything else I should know?"

She shrugged. "Super strong, fast. Take a couple extra swords. When I cut them last time it healed, like between swings. We might just have to leave them in there just to get it's attention."

Angel pulled a couple of the swords out and sheathed them under his coat. "Right. It's going to be tight in there." He told her. "I saw this thing back at Halloween remember. It's big. As bad as it's going to be for us it will be worse for him." He explained choosing a short handed fighting axe and swinging it a couple of times.

Buffy nodded, grabbing a couple of knives for herself.

"You talked to your mother?" he asked her, almost conversationally.

Buffy sighed. "She's still trying to understand everything. I don't know if she ever will. I guess she was happier in denial land."

"I hate to say it, but maybe it's better in the long run." Angel offered.

Buffy sighed, "Long run? I guess so. Just not right now." After getting over the whole Vampires are real thing Buffy hadn't really been able to talk with her mother. The two of them were dancing on eggshells, neither wanted to talk about it and it was the only topic they could think about. Not that Buffy could say that, instead she shut the car's trunk and the two of them made their way down to the beach.

They weren't sure how good Sanguinius's hearing was, but Buffy wasn't going to take any chances. Moving as quietly as she could Angel got the hint and was just as silent. Luckily after they got down the soft sand muffled their steps, even if it did get everywhere.

It was a long walk, made longer by the way they moved. After what felt like hours the two of them made it to the cave that Angel's contacts had told him about.

Apparently it had been a demon hangout. A little place they liked to go to get out of town and lie low. Word was the last demon to try and use the place recently was found very, very dead by something. Something that wasn't Slayer. With no other clues she hoped the contact was right.

At the cave mouth she slowly drew her sword. Inside she could see a flickering firelight quite a bit inside. For a moment she almost convinced herself this was going to work.

"Come inside Buffy."

She froze. It was impossible to forget that voice. Deep and resonant, but clear and musical at the same time. Impossibly beautiful it made her heart skip a beat every time.

Quickly she gestured to Angel to stay behind, but he shook his head. Moving again the soft sand became bare rock underfoot. There were a couple of turns in the cave, but eventually they were inside.

The cave was just the beginning. Inside was a lot bigger. It opened up into a proper cavern, dark tunnels leading deeper, towards town. Buffy guessed this was just one part of the near endless maze that was under Sunnydale.

The fire wasn't the only light inside. There were a couple of torches jammed in crevices, but the only thing that demanded Buffy's attention was the hulking figure crouched to one side.

The cavern was big, but not quite enough for the giant. He didn't seem to mind, or notice as he poked at the fire with a long pole.

"Holy!" Angel hissed. While he might have seen it Buffy guessed this was the closest her boyfriend had got. It's presence was stronger the closer you got.

It had changed from the bedsheet toga of before. While still the same material the Primarch had time to modify it. Now it looked like a simple, yet somewhat stylish, tunic. Tied at the corners and under the arms, leaving it's spectacular toned and muscular arms bare. The tunic came down to its knees and was held around the waist with a loose rope. "Ah, the creature known as Angel." They looked up, a ghost of a smile on its too perfect features. "We have yet to be properly introduced. I am Sanguinius."

Buffy felt her heartbeat racing. Being this close she could feel the adrenaline racing through her veins. She could almost taste the radiant power of the thing before her. It was intoxicating.

It pulled the wooden pole from the fire and gently blew on the end. For a moment brief embers glowed before scattering. It then took a sharp looking stone from its side and ran it over the edge. Shaving slivers from a blackened point.

It took her a moment to see that it was a wooden spear. Ten feet long with a point as broad as the Primarch's hand. Fire hardened it wasn't as strong as her sword, but it didn't need to be. "Where did you?" She began to ask.

"Driftwood, mostly." It explained simply. "I collected some fuel from the nearby woods. The rest, what I can make use of, I will."

It continued to inspect its creation. "I had hoped my gambit with Drusilla would keep you busy, but it seems you are as impatient as I feared. Before we, inevitably, fight wouldn't you rather just talk."

Buffy played with her sword, trying to look nonchalant. "About the weather?"

"It's Northern California. Bright and sunny covers that subject suitably don't you think. No, I was wondering if there was anything you, either of you, would like to ask."

Buffy glanced at Angel. He was backing off and she could tell he already thought this was a bad idea. So did she, but for different reasons. "Why?" She asked without thinking.

"Why?" It tilted its head, putting the spear down.

"Why am I the only one to see you?" She asked. "Why does no one see you like I do?"

"I think a better question would be how do you see me." It held up a hand. "Let me answer both. You and I are very much the same Slayer. We are both weapons. Where I am a sword, you are a dagger. I was made to lead armies, to command legions. I am the shining light of reason, forged to burn a path across the stars. You are the blade cast to smote humanity's enemies in secret. We are two sides of the same coin child. Destined to be spent on the same ultimate duty."

It paused. "You fear me because in me you see a reflection. Power unbound, unleashed. What you fear inside yourself recognised at last. That is why only you see what you do. The darkness in yourself is an echo of mine."

Buffy could feel the truth in it's words. "No." She lied, not able to look it in the eye.

"This is why I wanted you to wait before coming here." It said sadly. "You know the truth, but you deny it. Poorly. With time you would recognise this yourself. While young you are no fool."

As Buffy still refused to look at it Angel moved. "Wait!" She tried to stop him, but he was already halfway across the cavern. Fighting axe high as he jumped.

Sanguinius moved. It was just like before. To Buffy time seemed to stop for everyone but the winged monster. Angel was frozen in mid air. Arm coming down but nowhere near fast enough. The monster closed the distance between them in less than a heartbeat. With almost a casual flick of a wrist Sanguinius knocked the axe away and then, with the same hand, caught Angel. Holding the vampire with a soul at arms length with no effort.

Angel was not a small guy, not even close, but Sanguinius held him like a child's doll. "Not your best idea." It said pointedly before throwing him away. Angel hit the cave wall and bounced off. Buffy ran to her boyfriend's side in an instant.

"Can you stand?" She asked him.

Angel grunted, trying to pick himself up. "I'll slow him down. Run."

"Brave, but he doesn't understand yet does he?" Sanguinius remarked. "Poor vampire. Cursed with a soul, but not the insight into them. It was never going to be you that fought me."

Buffy helped Angel up to his feet. She had to do this. "He's right, you're the one that's got to run. I've got this."

"This won't go how you think it will." Sanguinius warned.

Angel wasn't following any of this "What?"

Sanguinius chuckled. "Buffy is no fool, Angel. She has faced me and knew how this would go. Although it is my turn to ask why. Why do you want me to kill you Slayer?"

Buffy felt herself pale as Angel stiffened besides her. "I, I don't."

"Then why try to fight me, knowing you will lose?"

Angel looked at her. "That's why you didn't want the others here!"

"No!" Buffy looked desperately between them. "I... We..." she tried to explain but she couldn't think of anything to say. "I can't stop it. I can't stop you. I know that, but I have to try. If you're right and what I see in you is my own darkness then I know just how bad that is." She told it. "I can't let it win. If I can't stop you I can at least die trying."

Buffy charged across the cavern. She kept the sword she had low, hoping to get closer before swinging, but Sanguinius moved again. With a dancers grace it dodged, as if ignoring the tight space. Somehow picking up the spear at the same time. "You are wrong. There is another way."

Buffy swung again, but was parried by the spear's shaft. Knocking the blade away. "You kill me, or I kill you." She insisted.

"No!" It bellowed "I refuse. This is not Buffy speaking. This is the Slayer in you. Rise above it."

Buffy wasn't listening. She tried again and again to cut the monster with no luck. There was a strange detachment at that moment, like she was fighting on autopilot.

She knew it was hopeless, the Primarch has her outmatched in every way, but it didn't matter. This was how she was going to die and she was almost okay with that. "I'm a weapon, remember. Weapons are supposed to fight." She goaded it

"Only when called upon." It said. "You fight the wrong enemy! We are allies!"

"You wish!" She spat at him, jumping up to kick it in the chest.

The monster leaned out of the way. "True, I fight my darkness as you battle your own. I need you to see that. Together we can rise above our fears and horrors, like this we surrender to them."

"I won't surrender, to anyone!"

"Then I must." Sanguinius spun away a handful of steps before it dropped the spear. "This battle serves no purpose, let my death do so instead."

Buffy stopped. "Pick it up." She snarled. "I said pick it up!"

"No. You will have to kill me." They dropped to their knees and bowed their head. The huge wings draped across the stone floor. "Strike true and remove my head. Send my soul back on its journey."

Buffy hesitated.

"The darkness you see reflected in me I see in you." It said. "As I saw in my brothers. I watched it consume Horus and the others. I can only hope you have the strength to turn away."

"You are a monster." She snapped. "But so am I."

"Only if you chose to be."

* * *

Angel was helped outside by Buffy. He hadn't broken anything when the giant had thrown him into the wall, but he was hurt. Vampires could still bruise and he knew by morning his whole side would be black and blue.

"You did the right thing." He told her.

Buffy winced. "We'll find out I guess." They were only a couple of steps outside before she stopped "What now?"

Angel looked up they were surrounded by more than a dozen demons. Not just vampires, a couple of Polgara's were there, along with somethings Angel didn't have names for. Including one that was a huge lump of muscle, with long ape arms and a flat head with a pig-like nose.

"Is that a troll?" Buffy asked.

Angel pulled himself straight. "Looks like." He looked again, recognising some of them as patrons of Willy's Bar. "I think one of my contacts sold us out."

"Got that right, Vampire." A demon with horns and a set of rotten teeth snarled. It's bad breath almost visible in the night air. "Got tired of some love sick bloodsucker failing to take out you and the girl. So me and the boys here thought we'd finish the job."

Buffy pulled out her knives while Angel got one of his spare swords ready. "I'd say you and what army, but yeah, I guess you could call that an army." She quipped lamely.

Angel was trying to put a plan together for how to get out of there when a large hand rested on his good shoulder. The demons backed off, quickly as the hand's owner stepped into the moonlight. "While I did not attack the Slayer I have no such compunction with your kind." Sanguinius announced grimly, putting himself between them.

* * *

horned demon looked to their pet troll. "Grog. Kill that thing."

The troll reared up and staggered forward. There was an explosion of air and Sanguinius took flight. His wings unfolded into two great white sails as they soared overhead.

"Those things are real?" Buffy gasped at the wings. "They work? I thought they were just decorative!"

"Looks real to me." Angel said, he'd seen a lot over two centuries of un-life but this was something else.

The winged angel threw his spear, midair, with enough strength to pierced the Troll. Straight through, like a pin driven through a butterfly in a collection. Coming down to earth with the power of a comet Sanguinius swung a left hook for the troll's head. His strength was so great he didn't just take the thing's head off. The troll's face imploded as the skull shattered.

Landing Sanguinius pulled the spear free, letting the giant corpse fall to the sand. "You had your chance to flee." They told the crowd. "I am rightful vengeance. I am judgement. Make peace with whatever degenerate gods you worship, for I will lay them dead beside you."

End Reflections Dancing on a Pin.


End file.
